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JEJunior Engineer LabPico W + micro:bit course
00 30 minutes

Meet the robot brain

Install the tools, wake the board, blink the light that is already on it

Meet the robot brain project
Illustration of the finished idea. Build from the diagram and connection table, not the photo.

Mission goal: Get MicroPython onto your Raspberry Pi Pico W, talk to it from Thonny, print a greeting, and blink the small LED that is built into the board.

Section 1

Understand

New ideas

  • What a microcontroller is and why it needs firmware
  • What the >>> prompt in Thonny means
  • Running a script on the board instead of on your computer
  • try / finally: always leave the hardware in a safe state
  • 1The Pico W is a tiny computer that runs your code.
  • 2Thonny sends MicroPython code to the board over a USB data cable.
  • 3The light on the board is Pin("LED"), not GP25.

Safety first

  • Use a USB cable that carries data, not a charge-only cable. A charge-only cable will power the board but Thonny will never see it.
  • Hold the board by its edges. Dry hands, no metal on the table under the board.
  • Nothing is wired in this mission, so there is nothing that can be wired backwards. Enjoy it while it lasts.